John O'Boyle/The Star-LedgerNewark Mayor Cory Booker is shown in this July file photo. Tuesday, the mayor went before the city council to push for his budget, though it's unclear whether council members will pass the spending plan tonight.

NEWARK — In a rare move, Newark Mayor Cory Booker went before the City Council Tuesday to make a last-minute pitch for his 2011 budget, but it remains unclear if the council will vote to introduce the spending plan today.

Two weeks ago, the council rejected the budget saying the proposed 7 percent tax increase was too onerous for Newark residents. Since then, the Booker administration has whittled the rate hike down to 6 percent, but if the council agrees to introduce it today, it will still only be by a slim margin, according to city leaders.

"I wouldn’t hazard a guess," said West Ward Councilman Ron Rice, when asked if the council would accept the $774 million spending proposal. "I do think it’s important to introduce a budget, but I believe we were right in holding it up." The city appropriations will be $588 million and the average homeowner would see a $336 increase on their fourth quarter city tax bills.

"I’m hoping we’ll introduce the budget. It was a very good conversation," Booker said after leaving the closed-door meeting. "The reality is this is just an introduction. There’s a lot of work to be done."

Council members said Tuesday that even if the plan is introduced, some big concerns remain — primarily, how to fill the $57.5 million budget gap.

"That’s the $64,000 question," said At-large Councilman Carlos Gonzalez, adding, "We will not be able to close a significant gap by just scrubbing the numbers."

The city is currently negotiating with the state to garner some kind of aid, although any money will likely come with strings attached.

"They are going to impose some very strict controls over how we spend the money and how we operate," Gonzalez said. "I’m afraid of that."

City budget officials said they hope to cut the deficit to $40 million by the time the budget is adopted next month. With state approval, the city can reduce the amount it has allocated for tax appeals and could find savings in bonds paid out for capital expenses.

Rice, who proposed a raft of cost-cutting measures last year — such as charging more for taxi-medallions and the sale-leaseback of city buildings — said the next month will be spent pursuing similar ideas, but many require state approval.

"We're going to push the administration to push for some of these things," Rice said.